October 23, 2013

Are fossil fuels not cool for schools?

North American college campuses have always been fertile ground for embracing and popularizing novel ideas, from the revolutionary (free speech, civil rights, social networking) to the ridiculous (streaking, goldfish swallowing, phone booth stuffing).

One idea that’s making the rounds on campuses these days is fossil fuel divestment (a notion thoroughly examined in this University of Oxford research paper. College and university students are being encouraged by environmental organizations to start and support campaigns calling on their institutions to divest from fossil fuels as means of addressing climate change.

350.org

Driven by 350.org, an international environmental organization headed by author Bill McKibben, Fossil Free allows students to join existing local campaigns or start new ones on their campuses.

Fossil Free urges students to pressure administration to “immediately freeze any new investment in fossil fuel companies, and divest from direct ownership and any commingled funds that include fossil fuel public equities and corporate bonds within five years.”

Is jettisoning investments in fossil fuels really something public and private institutions of higher education should pursue?

We don’t think so. And given some basic energy requirements staring us in the face, some academics have voiced the same opinion.

Energy needed

The world’s growing energy needs are undeniable – humankind will continue using more energy, not less. Fossil fuels are currently the best energy source available and will likely continue to be so for years to come, given their reliability and energy density.

It’s awesome to see students who are passionately invested in our future. We need all perspectives in the energy debate, and who better to participate than those who will live with the fallout from today’s decisions?

Fundamental to contributing constructively to the climate change debate is knowledge, specifically an understanding of where energy comes from now and how we’ll meet our energy needs in the future.

As mutual fund company NEI Investments explains in its take on fossil fuel divestment, any divestment strategy that ignores the measures already being taken by responsible fossil fuel companies ignores the enormous good they do for our energy system.

Whether the fossil fuel divestment campaign will get additional traction on campuses or elsewhere remains to be seen.

Comments

North American college campuses have always been fertile ground for embracing and popularizing novel ideas, from the revolutionary (free speech, civil rights, social networking) to the ridiculous (streaking, goldfish swallowing, phone booth stuffing).

Oil Sands Question and Response (OSQAR) is a blog created by Suncor Energy to support constructive dialogue about the oil sands. In our weekly posts, we talk about the energy industry, environmental impact, tailings management and reclamation, water management and the social and economic implications of oil sands development.

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